The function of a boarding pass is to prove to security that you are supposed to be on the train, plane, ship or vehicle for the particular trip specified on the boarding pass. If you do not have a boarding pass, you are not permitted to board.
Boarding passes are only good for the travel specified on the boarding pass. The voyage and itinerary numbers are printed on the boarding pass in order to identify what it is good for.
A boarding pass may be printed from a computer or may arrive via mail, depending on what type of boarding pass it is. If a boarding pass is mailed with a ticket packet, the boarding pass will be the size of all other documents in the packet. It contains the traveler's full name, birthday, address, voyage number and itinerary number. If it is for a flight or other type of transportation, the departure time will also be printed on the boarding pass.
In most cases, a ticket is not a boarding pass. A boarding pass contains all of the pertinent information necessary to board, while a ticket is basically just a receipt of purchase.
Boarding passes can range in size from a sheet of paper (8 by 11 inches) down to a ticket-sized pass (8 by 4 inches).
Boarding passes are used most often for flights, cruises and long-distance train travel. Tickets are used for most bus travel, ferry travel and other train transportation.
